Improving Board Performance Article 4
A Good Board Member Recruits New Board Members
A good board member recruits new board members, providing them with orientation and training for the foundation's business and mission.
Countless individuals have been recruited to serve as volunteer board members without being properly informed of their roles or of the organization’s expectations. Consequently, those board members may not be fulfilling their essential duties simply because they are uninformed.
This is no small problem. Hundreds of board members in the United States are perhaps accepting invitations to become board members without understanding the level of commitment this requires. By not providing board prospects with well-defined expectations and an adequate board orientation, board members cannot be held accountable for limited involvement.
Disoriented board members are more likely to exhibit behaviors that are generally considered problematic. Such behaviors include irregularly attending board meetings, frequently leaving board meetings early, coming to meetings late, not participating in organization events, failing to meet fundraising obligations, declining committee assignments and making little or no personal financial contributions to the organization. Block (2004) says such apathy and disloyalty puts board members in a bad light, when in reality they are the unintended consequences of ineffective recruitment (p.42).
Recognize the following symptoms of a dysfunctional board and the appropriate solutions. Being prepared for dysfunctional situations can prevent leagues of trouble for your board members and your leaders.
1 No strategic plan: Create a strategic plan
2 A narrow fundraising base: Get personally involved with fundraising
3 Minimal productivity: Empower personnel
4 Staff-board breakdown: Open lines of communication
5 Fear of change: Commit to change
6 Declining morale: Implement board exchange theory
7 Financial instability: Review finances
8 Unhappy audiences and clients: Survey your audience
9 Loss of key staff: Find more flexible employees
10 Poor attendance: Serve a meal, shorten the meeting, stick to the agenda
Block also suggests year-round recruitment and cultivation of board prospects even when there are no immediate vacancies. Such an effort is often arduous; however, it results in a board fueled with the leadership energy needed to meet its goals. Attempting to short-circuit recruiting and nomination procedures can also short-circuit relationships. Using the quickest and easiest methods to select board candidates usually means trouble and lays the foundation for recruitment disorientation.
Block, S.R. (2004), Why Nonprofits Fail, John Wiley & Sons, San Francisco
